AI Cost Calculators
AI Coding Agent Cost Calculator
Estimate the full cost of AI-assisted software work across planning, code generation, repair loops, review, CI execution, human approval, setup, and delivery success.
Enter Your Coding-Agent Workflow
Model planning, implementation, repair, review, execution, and human approval.
Monthly Tasks and Iterations
Planner Model Tokens and Prices
Coding Model Tokens and Prices
Review Model Tokens and Prices
Execution, Human Review, and Setup
Manual Baseline and Budget
Estimated monthly coding-agent workload
Planner calls: 540
Coding and repair calls: 2,970
Review-model calls: 540
Sandbox and CI runs: 2,700
Human-reviewed tasks: 125
Successful tasks: 410
Total model input tokens: 50,220,000
Total model output tokens: 9,504,000
Coding-Agent Cost and Savings
The result separates planner, coding, review, execution, human approval, fixed platform, and setup costs.
Monthly coding-agent planning cost
Per attempted task
—
Per successful task
—
First-year automation
—
Planner-model input
4,860,000 input tokens across 540 calls
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Planner-model output
810,000 output tokens
—
Coding-model input
41,580,000 input tokens across 2,970 calls
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Coding-model output
8,316,000 output tokens
—
Review-model input
3,780,000 input tokens across 540 calls
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Review-model output
378,000 output tokens
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Sandbox and CI execution
2,700 runs including retry overhead
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Human code review
125 reviewed tasks · 25 hours
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Fixed monthly platform cost
Agent platform, repositories, observability, or orchestration
—
Amortised implementation
$0.00 spread across 12 months
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Monthly operating cost: —
Manual-only monthly baseline: Enter the developer hourly rate
Monthly operating comparison: Enter the developer hourly rate
Monthly planning comparison: Enter the developer hourly rate
First-year comparison: Enter the developer hourly rate
Approximate break-even volume: Enter the developer hourly rate
Implementation payback: Enter the developer hourly rate
Price inputs entered: 0 of 10
Budget status: Add a budget to compare
* Important: This calculator stores no model, coding-agent, sandbox, CI, labour, or platform price. Enter the current effective rates for the exact services being considered. Blank optional price fields are treated as zero. Task difficulty, repository size, context caching, failed deployments, taxes, storage, and security review can change the final cost.
Coding agents rarely finish a task in one model call. A production workflow can include repository analysis, planning, several edit iterations, test-repair loops, review, sandbox execution, and human approval. This calculator combines those costs.
Calculating the Full Coding-Agent Workflow
Enter monthly coding tasks, planning calls, implementation iterations, repair attempts, review calls, and expected success rate. The calculator turns these into total model calls and token usage.
Planner, coding, and review models can have different input and output prices. This supports workflows that use a stronger planning model, a lower-cost implementation model, or a separate review model.
CI or sandbox runs, fixed platform costs, human approval, and implementation work are included separately from model tokens.
Modelling Repository Context and Iteration
Enter the average repository context sent to planning, coding, and review calls. This can include source files, dependency information, issue text, diffs, logs, and test output.
Coding iterations represent planned edit cycles. Repair attempts represent extra cycles caused by failed tests, builds, linting, incomplete output, or review feedback.
Retry overhead adds repeated calls caused by timeouts, malformed output, tool errors, or other workflow failures.
Including CI, Sandbox, and Human Approval
Coding agents may run tests, builds, linters, package installs, code execution, or browser checks in a sandbox. Enter the average executions per task and the effective price per 1,000 executions.
Human approval is calculated from the share of tasks reviewed, minutes per review, and developer hourly rate. This can represent pull-request review, security review, or final acceptance.
Comparing With Manual Development
Enter the manual developer hours needed for one comparable task. The calculator creates a manual-only labour baseline and compares it with the coding-agent workflow.
Results include monthly operating savings, first-year savings, cost per attempted task, cost per successful task, implementation payback, and approximate break-even task volume.
Practical Decisions This Tool Supports
- Estimate AI coding-agent cost before rollout.
- Separate planner, coding, and review-model spend.
- Measure the cost of repair loops and failed tests.
- Include CI, sandbox, and execution charges.
- Estimate human pull-request review labour.
- Calculate cost per successful coding task.
- Compare automation with manual developer effort.
- Find implementation payback and break-even volume.
Costs and Risks Outside the Estimate
The result does not automatically include repository hosting, storage, data transfer, secrets management, security review, observability, support, taxes, failed deployments, or the cost of incorrect code unless entered.
Task difficulty varies widely. Review simple fixes, medium changes, and complex work separately instead of relying on one average for every software task.
Frequently Asked Questions
What costs should an AI coding-agent estimate include?
A complete estimate can include planning calls, code-edit iterations, test-repair loops, review-model calls, CI or sandbox execution, human approval, fixed platform fees, and implementation work.
Why does context size matter so much?
Coding agents often send repository files, diffs, test output, issue history, and prior reasoning back to the model. Larger context increases input-token cost across every planning, editing, and review call.
What should count as a repair attempt?
Include repeated model calls caused by failing tests, lint errors, build failures, incomplete changes, merge conflicts, or code-review feedback.
Why are all model prices blank?
Coding agents can use different providers, models, gateways, and private agreements. Blank fields prevent example rates from appearing as current official prices. Enter the live rates for the exact planner, coding, and review models being considered.
How is the manual-development baseline calculated?
The calculator multiplies manual developer hours per task by the developer hourly rate and monthly task volume. This baseline can be compared with the automated workflow.
What is the break-even monthly task volume?
It is the approximate task volume needed for per-task labour savings to cover recurring platform costs and the amortised share of implementation cost.